


Five Years

by QueenoftheHobbits



Category: Star Trek: Alternate Original Series (Movies)
Genre: Gen, Long-Distance Relationship, gender neutral reader, little angsty but it ends super sweet
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-13
Updated: 2018-03-13
Packaged: 2019-03-30 21:23:33
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 871
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13960308
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/QueenoftheHobbits/pseuds/QueenoftheHobbits
Summary: Five years is a long time, so incredibly hard and you can’t wait to see him again.





	Five Years

You hadn’t seen Jim in five years. Five whole years. You were prepared for that. You knew it was going to happen, you knew why it was happening, after all you were dating a starship captain you couldn’t exactly expect him not to disappear into space for long periods of time…

But five years was a lot harder in practice than it was in theory. Five years of video calls, of hearing about his exploits after the fact, of sometimes hearing about them from other people, of not knowing if he was going to be okay…of knowing he was reckless. 

Five years of lonely nights, his side of the bed empty, the smell of him disappearing after the first laundry day. Five years of eating dinner alone, of eating breakfast alone, of not waking up to the Jim Special breakfast that he sometimes decided to surprise you with. Five years of not having a helping hand with cleaning and cooking, of not having your other half helping you with little things that would otherwise seem unimportant. 

Five years of being asked ‘how’s Jim?’ and not really being able to answer because you didn’t know exactly what was happening at every second and your information was always out of date. Five years of sympathetic looks. 

Five years of not being able to curl up with him at night, not being able to watch old movies together and laugh about the problems within them. Five years without kisses, without hugs, without tickle fights, without jokes between the two of you. Five years without sharing baths and driving across countryside in outdated cars. 

Five years without Jim. 

It was so hard, but you’d always remained proud of him. You’d known him when he was just another Star Fleet Cadet in that bright coloured uniform, when he was just another patron in the bar you frequented after work…and he’d come a long way. He’d grown up without losing that spark, he’d done so many amazing things, things you couldn’t even comprehend doing. But being proud didn’t stop you missing him night and day.

Nor did it prepare you for the nerves in your stomach as you waited for the shuttle to come in. He was coming home, after five years, he was coming home. It was irrational, you knew that, that fear that he would come home and not care anymore, that things would have changed…it was so irrational especially as you’d spoken to him not long before he was supposed to leave the Enterprise for Earth and he’d seemed as loving as usual. But the worry was still there. 

You hadn’t even bothered getting dressed, it was early in the morning and you’d been far too concerned with being there to see him arrive than getting out of your lounge clothes and into something different.

It’s a strange experience seeing him for the first time in five years, it’s almost like time slows down as you spot the familiar blonde hair in the crowd, his civilian clothes in place, the jacket he refused to get rid of even though it had a million scuff marks and points of damage. You don’t really take note of the other people, of other families coming together after five years, of all the noise, it’s like all your senses are honed in on him. 

You don’t run at him like in those movies, although the desire is there, rather you feel like your stuck in mud, unable to move forward. You stand there watching him as he makes his way to you, bag slung over his shoulder, a familiar quirked smile beaming at you. It’s like a weight off your shoulders, like you can breathe again simply because he’s there. 

He doesn’t stop until he’s wrapped you in his arms, cheek pressed against your cheek, breathing you in. He still feels the same, warm and soft, still smells the same like aftershave and coconut shampoo. It is a good sort of ache that fills your chest at being able to touch him again after five years.

“I’ve missed you…” You mumble into his neck, nuzzling there, feeling like the closer you get the less likely he is to leave again. You don’t want to go through five years apart again. Ever. You’d leave your job, join him if you had to, even if you’re terrified of space. 

“I’ve missed you too…five years…” Five years in space was hard enough, the same thing day in and day out, but without you, with the knowledge that he couldn’t see you? It made it infinitely worse. His cabin was cold, clinical. His insecurities, fears that you’d find someone else while he was gone, very real. 

“Don’t leave me again? I’ll come with you next time, I don’t care as long as we don’t have to do that again.” You press further into him, bodies touching from cheek to legs and you want to draw him even closer, practically become one person because it’s been so long, with such distance between the two of you…

“You’d do that?” He pulls back, just slightly, but even an inch feels like miles. 

“Of course I would, Jim. I love you.”


End file.
